Broadcasting breeds chips off the old block

WEEKEND WATCHDOG

Perhaps more than any other sport, baseball can serve as a bond between father and son.

Dads and their boys play catch together. Go to the ballpark together. Watch games side by side in the family room.

But the game also can bring a father and son together in nontraditional ways. Chip Caray, a third-generation baseball announcer, knows this well.

Chip's mom and dad, Skip, divorced when he was 6 years old. Growing up in St. Louis, quality time with his father -- the longtime voice of the Braves -- was limited primarily to summer visits to Atlanta.

And he barely knew his grandfather, legendary Cardinals and Cubs announcer Harry.

"If there's one big misnomer that people have about me, it would be that my dad, grandfather and I sat around the table for hours talking about baseball," Caray, 43, said from his Orlando home this week. "But I didn't know my grandfather very well, and I wasn't close to my dad."

Sadly, Chip never got a chance to bond with his granddad. After working as the play-by-play announcer for the Orlando Magic for nine seasons, he signed a contract to call Cubs game in 1998. Chip looked forward to working in Chicago at Wrigley Field, especially because he would be in the booth with his grandfather. But Harry suffered a heart attack on Valentine's Day and died four days later on Chip's birthday.

"That was one of the greatest disappointments in my life, professionally and personally," he said. "I thought it was going to be a great opportunity to work alongside my grandfather and really get to know him."

Although Chip never got the chance to bond with his Hall of Fame grandfather, he eventually got the chance to draw closer to his dad. After working in Chicago for seven seasons, he was hired by the Braves in 2005, giving him the chance to work alongside his father.

"Going to Atlanta was a dream come true," he said. "My dad and I have spent more quality time together in the past three years than we did in the previous 39 years of my life."

As for a fourth generation of broadcasting Carays (Chip and his wife, Susan, have a daughter, twin boys and another child on the way), Chip says only time will tell whether the torch will be passed on.

"Both my boys love the game," Chip said. "It would be great if they could be on the field, making the real money."

MORE FATHER-SON COMBOS

*Marty and Thom Brennaman. Hall of Famer Marty replaced Al Michaels as the Reds play-by-play announcer in 1974, a position he still holds today. Thom began his career in the late '80s, calling games with his dad in Cincinnati. He worked for the Cubs and Diamondbacks before returning to Cincinnati in 2006. The Brennamans are the only father-son combination each to have called a perfect game (Marty, Tom Browning in 1988; and Thom, Randy Johnson in 2004).

*Jack and Joe Buck. Jack was the voice of the St. Louis Cardinals from 1954-2001 and did baseball and NFL national broadcasts. Joe has followed his father's career path, starting with the Cardinals in 1991 before becoming the lead voice for Fox Sports coverage of MLB and the NFL. The Bucks are the only father-son combination each to have called a Super Bowl.

*Ken and Casey Coleman. Ken's broadcast career spanned five decades and included stints with the Cleveland Browns and Boston Red Sox. Casey was on the air in Cleveland for more than 30 years, and the Browns' practice facility in Berea, Ohio, is named in his honor.

*Woody and Wes Durham. Woody has been the voice of the North Carolina Tar Heels since 1971. Wes has done play-by-play for Georgia Tech since 1995.

*Dan, Dan Jr. and John Kelly. The longtime voice of the St. Louis Blues, Dan Sr. did the Stanley Cup Finals play-by-play from 1969-88. John, a former Tampa Bay Lightning announcer, now does Blues play-by-play on television. Dan Jr. was the radio voice of the Blues from 1997-2000.

ESPN put out a news release this week stating that its coverage of the U.S. Open would be spread across 15 multimedia platforms, including ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Classic, ESPN Deportes, ESPNEWS and ESPN360.com. No need to worry, poker fans. The network promises this won't pre-empt WSOP reruns.

TRUCKS RULE

The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series on SPEED continued its upward ratings trend last week, scoring a .94 (677,000 households) at Texas Motor Speedway. Don't understand why anyone would want to watch truck races on TV when all you have to do is hang out on S.R. 50 in Bithlo.